Question:
2019 here. I feel like I lack motivation to do anything well enough for school. Upper years keep stressing that first year is "easy" and we should take it easy and enjoy it. I am stuck in that idea and its hurting my grades to a dangerous level. I just dont want to stress out this year to find myself stressing out even more later on, yet I cant get myself to do proper school work because of that. your take? what should I do?
Response 1:
Hi 2019! I am sorry to hear you are going through this struggle, and I will try to offer you the best advice that I can… When upper years say that first year is “easy”, I would take that with a grain of salt. First year can be very busy. You have six courses, all of which have their own assignments and exams. So give yourself some credit because it definitely is not easy! Then, once you start your IPFC series, things do change a little bit. You will have an exam every two weeks, on top of the assignments and exams in other classes; however, you will usually only have about 4 courses at a time. Still, I would be lying if I said it wasn’t stressful or tiring. But eventually we adapt and it just becomes routine.
The first piece of advice that I would like to offer is that it is important to start developing healthy study habits from the beginning, otherwise it is very, very difficult to change it. I have been guilty of it before, where you say that you are not going to put effort in for this exam or for this semester, but then next time, for one that really “matters”, you are going to study super hard. It never works! You will find yourself falling into the same bad habits, and it will just snowball from there. So by “stressing out” a little bit now to get into those good habits, you will actually save yourself a ton of stress later on.
The main thing to keep in mind is that it is all about BALANCE. I’m not saying that you can’t still have fun or take breaks, but do it in moderation. Some strategies that I have used to increase my motivation are:
Make small goals at a time. If something is too big, it can be overwhelming and seem impossible, but if you break it down into little steps, it is much more manageable. Some suggestions for small goals may be to study for an extra hour a week or watch one less tv show a week. Then once you can consistently do that, try introducing a new small goal until you reach the level you want to be at.
Schedule one event each week that you can look forward to. For example, on Thursday you might plan to go to trivia night with your friends. That way while you are studying on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, you have an endpoint in the back of your mind which helps break up the studying.
Friends! Friends can be great motivators. I find that when I know that my friends have started studying for an exam, then it is time to get my butt in gear and start studying as well!
Ultimately, you have to find what works for you. Some people only need to study for a day, while others need to study for a month. Once you know how much studying it takes for you to reach your goals, then you can better know how much time you can get away with taking it easy. From what it sounds like, your current situation doesn’t seem to be working for you, but the fact that you have recognized this is the first step to correcting it. And I completely know that it is sooo much easier said than done once you are in that spiral. I am hoping that these little suggestions can help make a difference for you. If you are interested, we have many upper year mentors that would love to meet in person to chat with you, and you can even pick which mentor you feel most comfortable talking with based on our mentor profiles. Please email us atUWRxPRN@gmail.com if you are interested! Good luck and hope this helps!
Response 2:
Hi 2019! My response is really just going to highlight the main points from Response 1 since I agree with everything above! When upper years say first year is “easy”, they mean it in relative terms. They are just comparing it to when second year starts and the IPFC series begins. First year courses are more foundational in comparison to upper year courses. That being said, it is a rigorous curriculum! With six courses each term for first year with its own set of assignments, exams, and group projects, it is completely understandable to stress out and worry. As for the lack of motivation all the points Response 1 describes are great! Especially when it comes to friends, sometimes it’s really helpful to just have your friends get a fishbowl and study all together. That way you guys can discuss all the concepts and help each other understand them. Having the peer support can be a blessing as long as you guys stay focused and take small breaks when needed. As Response 1 also mentioned, BALANCE is everything! You need to find what works for you so that you aren’t overworked but aren’t slacking either. Everyone is different so taking the time during this first term to figure that out will be really beneficial. Once you see what your balance is, you can keep it going through the rest of this year :)